


Come Together

by evaunit0



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Galaxy Garrison, M/M, Mutual Pining, Sparring, you know the drill. genu-ine wrestle boys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-12
Updated: 2018-09-12
Packaged: 2019-07-11 07:44:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15967841
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/evaunit0/pseuds/evaunit0
Summary: Shiro and Keith reconnect with a favorite pass-time; everyone else is an involuntarily spectator to their pining.





	Come Together

The Garrison training room was painfully unaltered since Keith’s expulsion – orange and gray trim with rolled mats stacked against the wall, and except for the slight wear to some of the punching bags strewn up in the corner – the pleather edges peeled off in chips – even the smell of rubber and antiseptic was the same.

He was sure James would claim half the equipment’s wear be his own, though Keith seemed to be running into Ryan more frequently than anyone else during his free time – both of them exchanging a small nod before rotating around the gym in mutual silence.

Keith easily considered it a friendship.

Admittedly, he did miss the castleship’s gladiator bot – it was difficult to find a suitable obstacle to use his bayard against for practice, and he wasn’t about to coerce another pilot into sparring with him.

He almost texted Hunk, asking if he had some free time, when he heard the door slide open.

Like always, there was only one person he really wanted to see enter the room.

Even in a white tank and Garrison-issued sweatpants, Keith had to bite his lip as he met the pair of polished gray eyes walking towards him. “Hey,” said Shiro, grinning. “They cleared me for recreation hours.”

Keith was stretching, and saw Ryan glance over briefly before going back to his weights, earphones in.

“That’s great, Shiro.”

Shiro grinned wider, his head tilting. Since his prosthetic had been attached, and after his fight with Sendak, Sam agreed with the medics that Shiro needed at least a week of rest before he could safely use his arm again, restricting his schedule to council meetings and brief publicity shoots, along with physical checkups every morning and afternoon.

_I’m so bored._ Shiro text him once, presumably in the middle of an exam.

Keith was eating lunch with Pidge, and held back a smile. _It’s for your own good, you know._

_Yeah,_ Keith could see the smirk on Shiro’s face. _You saved my ass, I guess I should take care of it. See you at the next mission debriefing?_

Keith’s palm itched. He missed alone time with Shiro more than anything, but he wasn’t selfish enough to complain. He’d take what he could get. _Save me a seat._

_You don’t have to ask :)_

Keith felt himself pale as he stepped into the boardroom with Pidge – they’re the last ones there, and Shiro gestures to the seat beside him.

As he’s lowering himself into the chair, he notices something on the tabletop – a single place card laid in front of him.

_K. Kogane_

“They put you beside me,” Shiro’s voice was in his ear, low enough that Iverson didn’t look up from his notes. Keith kept his eyes trained on Shiro’s new arm, pinching the edges of Keith’s name card. “I guess they already knew.”

Keith tried not to think about the heavy hand Shiro had placed on Keith’s shoulder during the meeting – needlessly praising his flying abilities and special qualifications to lead the mission to the point that James coughed loudly, earning a kick from Nadia.

Keith may be the leader of Voltron, but it only took a touch from Shiro to knock him out of commission.

He was giving him that same look now, and Keith felt too self-conscious to continue doing calf stretches, instead standing to awkwardly accept a pat on the back as Shiro passed him, going for the stack of mats against the wall.

“Want to help test out this upgrade? Allura and Pidge just programmed it.”

Shiro kicked the bundle until it unfolded, a large mat meant for tumbling.

Keith tried to ignore the jump in his pulse, shrugging. “Sure. But I should be able to use my bayard, to be fair.”

Considering it, Shiro gave a nod to the door, crossing his arms. “I’ll wait.”

“No need,” Keith felt overly smug as the handle formed in his fingers, feeling a swell in his stomach as Shiro’s eyebrows raised.

He quickly looked down, and Keith swore he saw a dusting of pink across his nose before Shiro began adjusting the straps on his gloved hand. His voice was velvet. “You never stop finding ways to impress me, Keith.”

Keith blanked.

_You know that look Lance and Allura get when they look at each other?_ Hunk had said to him once while they were walking through the Garrison’s garages. _The puppy eyes and soft smiles?_

_I guess so._ Keith had replied, but he was mostly focused on locating where their assigned cruiser was, testing the locks on several vehicles.

That obviously wasn’t the answer Hunk wanted. _Yeah, well, I bet you’ve seen that look before._

He thought Hunk was insane – he’d never had someone like him before, let alone give him the sappy treatment the princess and Lance reserved for each other.

But it was almost like reading a dictionary when Shiro met his eyes again, cheeks warm, with Hunk’s words echoing in his mind.

Shaking it off, Keith took his stance on the edge of the mat. “I learned from the best.”

That made Shiro laugh. “Ready?”

“Always.”

Shiro leaped first – a quick dive that had Keith rolling in a tuck already, his bayard forming a sword as he stood. His knee popped, and he almost cursed himself for being too embarrassed to do a couple lunges in front of Shiro.

The next rounds were calculated, mixed techniques of old Garrison maneuvers with varied motions earned from the field.

Neither of them really wanted to think about how they got those skills – if anything, they wanted this simple leisure to remain at the same value as it always had: two friends, brawling for sport.

_You’re the first emo jock I’ve ever met._ Lance had said, phrasing it as a half-compliment.

Keith almost forgot how easy it was to spar with Shiro, how mindless and instinctual the movements came to him. They could feel each other’s breath as they clashed, locked, and rebounded, the room echoing every step for them.  
He lived for the hint of a smile on Shiro’s face, searching earnestly for a thread of weakness he could shock him with.

But it was more difficult to keep up with his new arm than Keith would like to admit, even with Shiro being generous and only using it within a realistic range of attack.

He managed to push Keith on his back, his head spacing for a moment before he dodged a chest blow.

_Man, I miss Allura._ Keith remembered Lance laying on a sofa this past week, forlornly sharing a bag of chips with Hunk. Keith sat across from them with Romelle, who was watching a movie on Pidge’s laptop, both their legs propped up on the table.

_She’s working, Lance._ Hunk said between crunches, rolling his eyes. _Geez, you don’t see Keith complaining about Shiro having a busy schedule._

_Why would I?_ Keith growled, feet hitting the floor, and he immediately sensed the defensive tone that had Lance snorting.

_Whatever. At least I don’t have it as bad as him,_ Lance jerked a thumb at Keith, and Hunk shook his head. _At least I’m self-aware._

Was he not?

Keith knew he loved Shiro – knew it as well as he trusted him right now, both of them hurtling deadly blows at each other with extreme caution in mind.

He also knew he’d never push it, never ask for Shiro to be anything more than family to him. It wouldn’t be fair – especially now that Keith had his mother, the Blade, and friends.

He didn’t want him to be alone, not ever again.

_Correct me if I’m wrong,_ Allura said at breakfast, which had begun to be one of her favorite phrases on Earth, _but shouldn’t Keith and Shiro be living together?_

Both Pidge and Lance had sputtered on their drinks, and Keith felt the onset of a headache.

_I mean,_ Allura quickly amended, seeing Keith’s reaction, _the rest of the paladins are living with their families, and I thought you two –_

_It’s different._ Keith said flatly, and left it at that. He wasn’t upset. He wasn’t. He just wanted to eat his eggs and leave.

It was different. When Keith was a cadet, his biggest daydream was to have Shiro move into his dad’s old shack with him, both of them flying as copilots for the rest of their lives.

He didn’t see any flaw in that line of thinking until years later. You didn’t want to live with your brother forever, didn’t want to share every aspect of your life with him.

_Sometimes,_ Shiro said, still recovering in Black – the night before Pidge had offered up a space in the Green Lion for him – they were sitting, propped up against the healing pod on the floor. His voice was raspy, and Keith knew he was still groggy from the sedation. _I daydream about saving you, so we’d be even. Isn’t that cruel?_

What Keith wanted most was to touch him, play off a caress to his head as medical concern. Instead, he dug his nails into his palm. _Shiro, you saved me first. I can’t repay you for that._

He knew Shiro didn’t see it that way. He knew no amount of arguing would change that, but he was content with Shiro sighing – whether emotionally or physically exhausted – and laying his head on Keith’s shoulder.

He was stupid enough to zone out for so long, letting Shiro catch the front of his shoulder, sending him tumbling backwards. Shiro followed, loosely trapping Keith in a brace.

A complaint rose up to Keith’s mouth – _stop going easy on me, Shiro_ – until he noticed the same flush across Shiro’s cheekbones, too deep-set to be from exertion.

Keith felt his eyes widen involuntarily.

He noticed Shiro’s stare lagging – his eyes took the long way to Keith’s face, working up his chest and neck - flicking briefly to his mouth - before finally meeting his pupils.

Oh.

_Oh._

Did Shiro have it worse than him?

Keith wanted to laugh – sharp, bitter. He wanted to ask Hunk _How did you know._

Instead, Keith wiggled loosely, elbowing lightly at Shiro’s side, wedging his legs apart with his knee, pulling a fraction of a groan out of Shiro.

He would have teased him more if he didn’t love him.

So Shiro’s nerves left him with room to spare – Keith immediately felt a way out of his grip, sliding out of his arms with minimal blocking, and was able to escape another pin by kicking out his legs, forcing Shiro to jump back or get hit in the shins.

“Fuck your long legs,” Shiro grunted, though it came out in an exhale as he blinked sweat from his eye.

Keith grinned, swallowing. “Can’t pin me anymore?”

The flare in Shiro’s eyes as he charged Keith was worth the taunt – the next time he managed to pin Keith, it was in a standing headlock, Keith twisting enough that Shiro couldn’t get a proper grip through his flails without pressing them together.

And he wouldn’t do that, Keith quickly learned.

Another escape had each of them circling, dying for a breath. Keith’s eyes passively jumped to the space behind Shiro, where he saw the blur of Ryan leaving through the door – not sparing even a glance in their direction.

Part of Keith wished he could apologize for whatever this was, and that he was a witness to it.

Shiro noticed his gaze, the distraction, and gave a swipe at his sternum. “Focus, Keith.”

It was too late – Keith felt Shiro’s new arm strike his wrist, and in shock, watched his bayard skitter across the floor. Before Keith could concentrate on summoning it again, Shiro was attempting to pin his entire torso, and he had to roll, making Shiro stumble.

Without planning an attack, Keith threw himself onto Shiro’s back as he tried to stand, forcing both of them onto the mat with a thud.

Shiro groaned as Keith scrambled for purchase on Shiro’s back, thanking luck that he managed to get Shiro’s prosthetic underneath him, wedged.

He bent over Shiro’s shoulder to look at his face, Keith’s smirk digging into his cheek as he watched Shiro’s blush soak into his skin, a shade of red prettier than it should be.

“Give up?”

“I could flip your legs with mine,” Shiro managed, though his voice was muddled, eyes now trained on some point on the wall in front of him, avoiding looking up at Keith’s voice. They were both panting, sweating enough that their skin was sticking uncomfortably, though Keith oddly didn’t mind.

Without commenting, Keith calmly shifted his hold - drawing up one of his legs to brace next to Shiro’s hip while he laid his other knee across the backs of Shiro’s thighs.

“How about now?”

It took Shiro a moment to gather himself, speaking in a mumble. Keith could tell from the vein on his neck that he was clenching his jaw hard enough to crack a molar, but he chose not to taunt him about it. “I could free my arm.”

Keith lowered himself against Shiro’s back, forcing his cheek into the floor. “That’s cheating, commander.”

Shiro snapped, his hair falling in his eyes. “I’m not the one playing dirty.”

Keith didn’t expect the clarity in Shiro’s voice, nor the blatant accusation.

It was twisted flirting, and Keith felt his nerves fray at the thought of it.

Slowly, Keith leaned down to speak into Shiro’s ear, watching him shut his eyes against Keith’s voice. “You can just tell me when you’re not feeling up for it, Shiro,” Keith shifted above him, making Shiro bite his bottom lip. “I won’t hold it against you if you can’t give it your all.”

“Keith –” Shiro started, but his breath was pushed out of him as Keith jumped off his back, retrieving his bayard from the ground.

He crossed his arms as Shiro gave him a confused look. “Come on. We could keep this up for hours, or we could go talk about it in Black.”

Shiro sat up, dazed, hair curled, and tank askew. But as Keith reached for his arm to pull him up, he broke into a smile, laughing, and buried his face in his hands.

“Was it that obvious?”

—–

They’re walking out of the showers into the hallway together - hair still dripping onto Keith’s shoulders - when Shiro speaks, clearing his throat.

“Hey, thanks for not teasing me too much.”

They both jump as their hands skirt each other in passing, both too shy to acknowledge it further than a blush. Keith smiled to himself – it was fine, they had a long time to work up to holding hands.

Noticing Nadia pass with Ina in tow, he almost waved, before he watched the former bend to whisper something in the latter’s ear, who’s eyes widened at the sight of Shiro and Keith, matching wet towels still draped over their arms.

“Actually,” Keith sighed, “I have a feeling everyone else will do that for us.”

**Author's Note:**

> another ficlet from my tumblr bc i've lost control of my fic-writing time :(
> 
> tumblr: paladinlion


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